To Fall or Not To Fall?

[Tait]

I am amidst a little Facebook discussion with an old boss of mine. The question is:

"If you are walking a patient and they suddenly become dizzy/unable to stand and you assist them by lowering them to the floor is this classified as a fall?"

Thoughts?

I personally did not see it as a fall, but preventing a fall. However there are some saying certain states, work environments (SNF in particular) do view this as a fall because it was "unplanned".

Tait

[testing109]

I agree with you, I don't see it as a "fall" but maybe it is "technically" a fall.

[Fribblet]

Somewhat related --

At my facility, we CALL A CODE if somebody falls if it isn't in an inpatient area. I live in Minnesota. It gets icy in the winter, and sometimes the floors get really wet from snow being tracked in. Somebody falls outside of/inside of the front entrance at least once a week. In addition, our hospital has clinic/office space, which means we have a ton of geriatrics in their walkers tromping in and out of the building all the time. A diabetic faints in the cafeteria? Code. I swear codes get called 3-4 times a day here for stuff that has nothing to do with a cardiac arrest/respiratory arrest/true nonresponsiveness, etc. Talk about a waste of time/money/paperwork when 15 people have to respond to that crap.

Wow. Just....wow.

If the fable "The Boy who Cried Wolf" ever applied to a policy......

[PostOpPrincess, BSN, RN]

An unexpected meeting with the floor = fall. Yours would be classified as a "slow descent."

*giggling*

[HamsterRN, ADN, RN]

We'd call this an "assisted fall" and still have to document it, but luckily we are still allowed to use our clinical judgement as to what sort of follow up assessment should be done.

[gentlegiver, ASN, LPN, RN]

In my facility if thier bottoms touch the floor (however lightly & safely) it is a fall and needs to ba addressed as such.

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Fall, and documentation as an incident.

[CT Pixie, BSN, RN]

Yup, considered a "fall' in my facility. An incident report done, call to family an doc. Neuros would only be done if resident hit head during "controlled let down".

Any unplanned change in vertical status is considered a fall

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Policy is not about applying clinical judgement to a situation. Policy is about stripping away clinical judgement and placing extreme safety measures like a blanket over a broad category (such as "falls"). This is to ensure that staff time is monopolized away from important matters, that mounds of paperwork will appear to drown the unfortunate staff member, and that the patient will be obtrusively monitored regardless of whether the situation calls for it. This is so that law suits are less likely.

This is also why nurses have become more task oriented, spend less time with patients, and do not have time to do basic nursing skills.

TL;DR: Mngmnt iz dum.

Actually, in NYS, at least, it is by law. State'll ding you a new one if it isn't there. I spend my life chasing bruises.

[Penelope_Pitstop, BSN, RN]

We would call that a "staff-assisted fall." I really hate that name. Sounds like we pushed the patient out of bed or something.